Chapter 28

Another 4-hour drive was under their belt as Dean pulled into Columbus, Georgia for Smackdown! that night. The final show before the TLC pay-per-view. He was looking forward to destroying Bray Wyatt, though he was also concerned about his script. Nyla was a friend now, but she was still under the Authority's thumb and, until that stopped, his storylines and scripts would keep him from punching Seth Rollins in the face. Seth was who he truly wanted to get his hands on and feud with, to stomp his face in the mat repeatedly. It wouldn't happen as long as the Authority was in power and Nyla was under their thumb. Hell, Dean wasn't stupid and knew, even if Nyla wasn't the one doing his storylines and scripts, the Authority would simply have another writer do it.

The only secret none of them knew was the identity of the wrestler Nyla had a baby from.

That was one she'd keep close to the chest. Dean didn't blame her, but his curiosity burned about it. Eventually, the truth would come out, especially once Nyla finally gave in and allowed Roman to help her. He'd already gone over the plan with Dean, wanting the man's opinion and Dean was all for it, knowing it really was the only option to ensure her family's safety. Now it was just a matter of getting Nyla onboard and in order to do that, she had to trust Roman. It would take time, he just hoped she didn't take too long to go to Roman for help…before she lost what little sanity she had left.

"You know, you never did tell me about your meeting with the Princess." That was too nice of a word to refer Stephanie as, but it was also her nickname backstage with all of the Superstars and Divas. "Wanna talk about it now?"

"No." Macaria was a coward for not coming out and telling Dean what had to happen, but she wanted to wait until they were in Vegas for their 2 days off before the pay-per-view. "Tomorrow or Thursday, we'll talk about it then. I promise. I just need to mull it over a little more in my head."

Dean did not like the sound of that, her words having an ominous feeling to them. "How bad is it, Macaria?" He asked gruffly, pulling up to the coffee shop she instructed him to drop her off at on his way to workout with Roman. "On a scale of 1 to 10."

"No." Macaria refused to answer him and reached over to softly kiss his cheek. "Have a good workout and I'll meet you at the arena later on. I'll ride with Nyla. We're gonna hang out for the day." It was going on 11 AM.

Dean watched her step out and shut the door, waiting until she was inside the coffee shop before taking off to the nearest gym. Roman was already in town, driving here the previous night alone to clear his head after his talk with Nyla. They had a lot to talk about as he was sure the women would be doing the same thing over coffee. Instead, the men would be sweating bullets and killing themselves while training and working out. Honestly, when Dean went a day without working out, he didn't feel right, but there were times he didn't hit a gym, such as on his days off. Granted, before he met Macaria, Dean went to the gym every single day, but now that he had a woman in his life, that had changed somewhat.

A sinking feeling developed in the pit of Dean's stomach as he continued driving, hoping Stephanie hadn't sunk her claws into Macaria already.

Nyla looked up when the door of the coffee shop opened and waved her hand at Macaria, trying to produce the barest hint of a smile. "Good morning." She greeted quietly, taking a sip of her coffee.

"Sorry for making you wait. Traffic was a bitch getting off the highway to come here."

"No problem, I just got here about 10 minutes ago and I'm so glad I made the drive last night instead of this morning. You guys are brave." Nyla chortled, the humor not touching her eyes and waited for Macaria to order her beverage of choice, along with a muffin.

"Yeah, we left just a little before 7, thinking we would beat the traffic." Macaria shook her head, smiling at the waiter bringing her coffee over and took a long sip of it. "So, what's going on? You said it was dire we meet up and the curiosity has about killed me. I'm gonna take a wild guess and say it has something to do with a certain Samoan that recently returned to the company, though."

Clearing her throat, Nyla nodded, unable to deny it and took a bite out of her cherry Danish she had ordered. "Yeah…it does." Roman's words about trusting him would not leave her mind, no matter what she did or who she was with. "He said he can help me get away from the Authority…"

"Oh really?" That was news to Macaria since she didn't talk to the big man, only introducing herself to him. "Well, why aren't you going for it then? Or is a trust issue?"

"It's a MAJOR trust issue. That man used to despise me and would yell at me on an almost weekly basis because of his shitty scripts and storylines I'd stick him in. I just don't know if trusting him is the right thing to do."

Nyla wanted more than anything to get away from the Authority, from Seth Rollins, and all the abuse she'd suffered. However, it wasn't just her anymore. She had a daughter and family to think about and Nyla refused to risk their lives in order to defy the Authority. What if Roman couldn't protect them? How would that even be possible when he was back on the road full time now?

"It's not just me anymore…"

"Your daughter, I know." Macaria reached across the table to squeeze her hand and frowned, deciding to make Nyla feel a tad better with her own news. "Just like I have no idea what to do about this job offer Stephanie McMahon offered me last night." She pulled her hand back, taking a bite of her muffin and another pull of her coffee. "I mean, I KNOW what I have to do, but…I just don't know how to tell Dean."

"Don't trust Stephanie, Caria. I'm serious. You've seen the type of destruction that woman is capable of. She's had me raped multiple times by the so-called future of the WWE, all to keep me under her thumb. She runs the show when it comes to the Authority, both on and off screen. Hunter is just another piece in her game of chess and now she wants to add you to the mix. Don't do it." Nyla shook her head, seeing the hesitation on the woman's face and sighed heavily. "What did she offer you? What kind of job and what's the catch?"

Tears welled up in Macaria's eyes. "T-This is all I've wanted and what I've been searching for my whole life, Nyla. She offered me a photography position within the company – full benefits, fulltime, and it's so much money, plus commission for any work the company decides to use. I don't know if I can pass this opportunity up…" She sniffled, trying to find the right words to say and shut her eyes when Nyla demanded, again, what the stipulation was. "She told me they wouldn't hire me unless I…ended things with Dean. At least until my 6 month probation period is up. She told me about how she and Hunter had to find their way back to each other because he chose his career over her, due to Vince ordering them not to be together. She made a lot of sense and I know she's been a horrible person to you, but…"

"It's a once in a lifetime opportunity." Nyla finished for her softly, not sure what she would do if this was her either.

"Yeah." Macaria wiped a few tears away from her eyes, hating the different emotions rushing through her and had to take a few deep breaths. "Dean and I aren't even a couple. We're just having fun with each other and…giving up my dream job, basically, for a man was never in the cards for me. I know I'm falling for him and my feelings for him run deep, but…I just don't know how to tell him."

It sounded like Macaria had made her mind up already. "You're taking the job, aren't you?" It was a mere statement, no question in her tone and watched her friend nod solemnly. "I don't blame you. If it was me, I probably would do the same thing."

That made Macaria feel marginally better. "Really? Even though you have to hurt the man you're with and leave him?"

"Like you said, you two aren't a couple and you've only been having fun, traveling together and having sex, right?" She waited for Macaria to affirm and took another sip of her coffee. "Then maybe that's all it is between you two. I don't know Dean well enough to tell you whether he wants more or not. And honestly, it's basically choosing your career over a man, when it comes right down to it." Stephanie was a vindictive, evil woman and Nyla could only hope karma bit her in the backside one day. "Now, I'm going to ask you a question and I want you to be honest with me."

"Okay…"

"Do you love Dean Ambrose?"

Macaria opened her mouth to respond and hesitated, hating how her mind and heart battled with each other over this answer. "I don't know…" It was an honest yet vague answer and she felt terrible as soon as the words came out of her mouth. "I mean, I care a lot about him and I'm falling for him, but…I don't think I'm near the L word stage yet. I'm definitely on the way there, though."

"Then I wouldn't risk your career over unknown feelings. You don't want to hurt him and I get that, but sometimes you gotta do shit in life you don't want to. Look at me, I never thought I'd be in the position I'm in now. Single, with a 9-year-old daughter and I'm being blackmailed by my boss's bitch daughter, who has an ego problem." Nyla snorted in disgust at herself for allowing this to happen in the first place and not telling Stephanie and Hunter, the entire Authority, to shove the blackmail up their backsides. "Now I'm gonna ask you another question."

"Shoot." It couldn't be any worse than the L word one.

"Are you prepared to work for assholes like the Authority? Because since you've been with Dean Ambrose intimately, chances are, they will be gunning for you as soon as you sign that contract. They'll try to make your life miserable and you won't be able to get out of it because of the contract bullshit." Nyla refused not to forewarn her friend on what she would be signing on for. The money and benefits were amazing in WWE, but along with that came a TON of drama and crappy politics to deal with.

Mulling that over, Macaria hadn't thought about that fact, even though she knew how malicious Stephanie McMahon could be. Nyla was a prime example of that. "Before I sign the contract, I'm putting a stipulation in it about that." She smiled at Nyla's arched brow. "I won't sign anything until I'm guaranteed I can leave the company and quit at any time if I'm not comfortable or the job isn't all it's cracked up to be. And if they can't put that stipulation in it, I'm not taking the job."

Macaria was a lot smarter than Nyla gave her credit for, not blaming the woman a bit for being extra cautious. "Good. I really wish I had a clause in my contract like that and something tells me they'll do it. Stephanie wants you on the road for a reason, which may sound bad, but at the same time, maybe they'll leave you alone since you're in the photography department." All she would be doing was taking pictures of all the Superstars and Divas; there would be no influence over the storylines and scripts the way Nyla had.

"Enough about me, let's focus back on you and this situation with Roman Reigns." Macaria didn't want the attention on her anymore, feeling more confident in her decision after discussing it with Nyla.

"There's really nothing to discuss. He wants me to trust him and I don't know if I can. I just don't see him being able to do anything differently to get me away from the Authority. He's only one man…" Nyla had no idea the ace Roman currently had up his sleeve. "I think it would be best if I just toe the line with the Authority, deal with the bullshit and…"

"Keep being their bitch?" Macaria shrugged at the slight dark expression crossing Nyla's face. "I mean that's what you are now, right? You refuse to let anyone help you and you're going to bow down as one of their bitches."

Nyla wanted to get angry and defensive over being termed that by a friend, but it was the cold, hard truth. "My daughter is the only thing, the only person, I care about in all of this. She is the one who will suffer if I make ONE mistake. I can't put her at risk. Stephanie has A LOT of money and money talks. It may sound like bullshit excuses, but I'm truly terrified of the power she wields. I mean, honestly, what would you do if you were me?" The Danish stirred in her stomach and she suddenly regretted eating it, the nausea set in. "I don't want to be their bitch…"

These were difficult questions to answer, but Macaria thought she'd done a good job so far. There was no reason to lie to Nyla and blow smoke up her backside. "I don't know…I mean, on one hand, if it was my daughter, I would do everything in my power to protect her. At the same time, however, if someone came to me, like Roman, and told me he could get me away from the Authority and out of the shitty situation I'm in, I would probably jump at it. Not gonna lie."

"Even though he used to hate you and thinks you're nothing more than a cunt?"

"People change their minds about others all the time, Nyla," Macaria remarked softly, sipping more of her coffee and let the valid point sink in. "And in Roman's defense, he didn't know what you were going through. He had no idea you were being coerced and threatened to write the shitty storylines you've given him. You have to put yourself in his shoes. I'm not saying he's a saint, but maybe you should put your trust in him and see if he CAN help you and your daughter out."

The women left the coffee shop, deciding to do some window shopping until it was time to head to the arena, each given a lot to think about.